Best Practices: Meeting Deadlines May Not Be Exciting, But It's Essential

One thing that 12+ years in school
teaches us is that deadlines are important, and all those years of practice
should, theoretically, help us get better at coping with time-limited tasks.
But deadlines change as we get older (unless you're a writer, and then you still have papers due on a regular basis!); you have tax deadlines, bill due dates, and time-sensitive work
assignments that are often heavily influenced by your colleagues. But, whether
personal or professional, know that all deadlines can be effectively met if you do a few
things to set yourself up for success. Read on for a few basic ways to get
really good at meeting deadlines.

Prioritize and Plan

Outline what needs to be done first,
from basic prep to final touches. From there, figure out how long it should
take you to complete each step.

Then, plan backwards from your
deadline, adding a few days to however long you think the task will take you
to allow for any unexpected obstacles. Plot out your timeline on Google
Calendar or a white board, or even place sticky notes in strategic locations
around the house. Basically, do whatever works so that strategic points in your
plan don't conveniently slip your mind.

Develop a Mild Case of OCD

More than one OCD "sufferer" has
said (and I've found this to be true, myself) that while obsessiveness may be
problematic in some ways, it's a trait that's absolutely golden when it comes
to work. Think about how it feels to get a song stuck in your head - total pain
in the butt, right? But you keep going back to it time and again until you
finally either listen to it or look up the lyrics to find that one that you
just can't remember or until another song comes along. This can also be a great
way to approach work; resolve to zero all your concentration in on one task and refuse to
let it go until you're finished.

Find Out What Helps You Concentrate

That's great, you say, but I'm kind
of ADD, lack patience, or am just not anal enough to take on OCD. Not a
problem! What it comes down to, then, is figuring out what trips the switch in
your brain that gives you tunnel-vision. Some common ways to focus are auditory
(depending on the person, silence, white noise, or different types of music can
help your sharpen your concentration at a given time).

Other ways to improve your
concentration: the perform-and-reward method (rewarding yourself with something
good staying focused for X amount of time), avoiding procrastination, and also avoiding
the temptation to multitask. It's also worth noting that getting enough sleep
and eating well will help keep your head in the game.

If you start to feel stuck or
brain-fried, don't be afraid to take a break - walk around the building, go get
coffee, talk to a friend for a moment - but budget out your pauses so you don't
lose sight of your ultimate goal: finishing the task.

Emmie Scott is an English major-turned-marketing exec, with a passion for writing, humor, sharing knowledge, and "pink drinks." After hours, she started Are Toe Rings Professional Attire?, a blog for college grads and twenty-somethings looking to find their way through that daunting labyrinth called…